State Police Offering Course

The Annual Citizens' Academy Will Begin In March And Run For Eight Weeks, Teaching Participants About Various Police Procedures.

February 06, 2004|By TRACY GORDON FOX; Courant Staff Writer

State police will conduct their annual citizens' police academy, beginning March 4, in Marlborough.

The course, which runs for eight weeks, is free to the first 35 applicants who live or work in the Troop K area -- Colchester, Andover, Columbia, Bolton, Hebron, Lebanon, Marlborough, East Haddam, Bozrah, Franklin, Lebanon, Salem and Windham.

The academy will be held Thursday nights at the Station 2 West Road Firehouse, next to the resident state trooper's office in Marlborough. Classes begin at 6:30 p.m.

While the academy largely is classroom instruction, in-the-field experiences also are provided. The curriculum includes the history of the state police, patrol techniques, motor vehicle stops, domestic violence, home and personal security, criminal and accident investigations and a mock trial.

Another topic is the new teen driving rules, which may be confusing to some parents, said Sgt. Stephen Ostroski, a supervisor at the Colchester barracks.

Ostroski said instructors may use a new driving simulator to show students what it is like to be involved in a police chase.

He said the barracks is targeting applicants from the Marlborough area because the course has been held in Colchester in the past.

Applications will be at Troop K in Colchester. Ostroski can be reached at the barracks at 860-537-7525. Applicants must be at least 18 years old, have no felony convictions and no misdemeanor arrests within the past year.

The session will culminate with a graduation and a certificate for each student.